


Blue Ink

by AlphaShae, Cyriusli



Series: The Alpha Files [2]
Category: One Piece
Genre: F/M, M/M, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-22
Updated: 2015-04-28
Packaged: 2018-03-02 22:08:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2827748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlphaShae/pseuds/AlphaShae, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cyriusli/pseuds/Cyriusli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Sanji wakes up with a massive hangover and a...oh god...is that a tattoo?! He begins the search for the artist who drew it on him, but he uncovers more than he initially bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Closing Time

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Keller here! Shaetil and I are at it again! This time we are trying something a little different. We hope you will follow along with us as this unfolds!

The sign flickered and Nami knew they would need to replace it soon. Or send it out to be repaired or something. Sighing, she stepped out onto the street, her boot heels clicking on the sidewalk as the cool air hit her skin. Another night down, she thought. As soon as that last customer was done trying not to faint, they could lock up and go home.

The All Blue was a small shop compared to others, it just being herself and Usopp, the tattoo artist, running the place. The two had met years ago while taking a blood born pathogens class, something all piercing and tattoo artists needed to go through. The two had hit it off and the rest was history. As soon as they were able, the two had banded together to create their own shop and All Blue had been born. It took a little while for their name to get out, but being right out on the main drag helped.

The bell on the door sounded behind her and a very pale looking guy walked out into the street. “You sure you're okay?” Flipping her air over her shoulder, Nami turned to take one last look at her latest piercing. The area was swollen and red, but the labre looked good. The guy nodded and swallowed, patting at his breast pocket to prove he still had the instructions she had left him with. “Good. Take care then! Thanks again!”

Pulling open the door, she had the open sign turned out before the door was even closed. “Usopp? How's it coming?”

“Good!” Came her reply and the dark haired man stuck his head out of his booth with a broad grin. His bandanna had slipped, riding low on his forehead and there were loose dreads hanging over his shoulders. “Your guy make it okay?”

“He headed towards his car.” Shrugging, she flicked a braceleted wrist into the air. “He's out the door...not our problem anymore.”

Rolling his eyes. Usopp ducked back into his work station, his voice echoing off the walls as he spoke. “Will be our problem if he falls down or something and the ambulance gets called.”

“The sign clearly states once out the door, you're on your own.” Sitting at the desk near the door, Nami pulled herself close to the computer and put the latest transaction into the accounting program on the machine. Just as she was reaching to pickup the paper and money the door slammed open, the bells ringing with the laughter that came with it. “Zoro!” She yelled, standing up and leaning forwards on the desk. “How many times do I have to tell you not to slam the door?!”

“Zoro's here?!” Usopp's voice sounded from somewhere out back.

“Nami!” The tone to his voice instantly told the orange haired woman the other man was drunk. Like really drunk and that in and of itself was a feat worth noting. Zoro never got drunk, tipsy once in a while sure, but he had the damn alcohol tolerance of..of...hell, she didn't know. His broad grin as he raised an eyebrow at her and sauntered, yes, sauntered towards her tipped her off right away. “Usopp here?”

“Did you...” Twisting her face in disgust, as she could smell the alcohol on him, Nami decided to just let the tattoo artist deal with this. “Yeah...he's out back. Why?”

“This...” The green haired man spun, wobbling slightly as he stopped. Nami rolled her eyes at him as he looked back over his shoulder at her, raising a hand slightly. His cheeks were flushed and his pupils blown, that stupid grin still plastered all over his face. Yeah...plastered, that was a good word. “Wait...hang on a sec.”

Zoro stumbled back out the door as Usopp came up to the front, wiping his hands on a paper towel. “What'd Zoro want? Why didn't he say hi?”

“He said he would be right back. He's drunk.” Picking up a pen, she pointed back towards the door and busied herself with her work.

“Zoro doesn't get drunk Nami.” Laughing, he tossed the balled up towel into the trash bin, watching as Nami sat down and waved him off. “Yeah yeah,” Walking across the open space, the artist busied himself with organizing the tattoo magazines and all his art portfolios on the table. The bell sounded again and he stood to see his friend walk in, tugging on the arm of a lanky blond.

“Usopp!” Zoro let the other man go, slinging an arm around his shoulders and throwing his free arm out to gesture towards the new comer. “He was smoking.” The green haired drunk proclaimed a little too loudly into the room “The cook here wants a tattoo.”

“Cook?” Snapping her head up, Nami sighed, but managed to gain the three men's attention. This blond guy was worse off than even Zoro was, barely standing as he swayed on his feet. Long bangs covering one eye and she knew instantly he didn't belong in their crowd. Where in the hell had Zoro even found him anyways? He looked clean, in the sense that he had no visible piercings or tattoos, goatee trimmed neatly and thin mustache to match.

“Tattoo him!” Zoro practically shouted into the artist's face and Nami was about to protest when Usopp did it for her.

“Oh...wow; no.” The artist raised his hands, shaking his head, pushing back against his friend's shoulders.

“Oh come _on!_ ” The blond slurred as he spoke and Zoro had to agree with him. Of course he did, that moron was just as drunk as his new blond friend here. She didn't miss the glance the green haired man sent him, a small curve of one corner of his mouth and his eyes lidding nicely. Oh, well, that explained it then...Zoro had the hots for him. Wait till he was sober. This was gonna be good...

Usopp's attention snapped to the blond and Nami caught the flush cross his dark features as he met the drunk blond's eyes. “I...I'm a professional. And you're drunk.”

“You've tattooed me drunk before.” Zoro happily put in.

Usopp turned to Zoro, then glanced back at the blond, biting at his lip. The other man, slid in closer to Usopp, getting into his space the same way Zoro was. When he spoke, his voice was low, but strained, the husky and raspy tone from the alcohol coming to the surface. “I have been told you are an  _amazing_ artist. I want you to draw on me.”

Nami heard Usopp groan and she knew it was all over. Picking up the keys, she tossed them over the counter where her partner caught them easily. “Lock up! I'm going to finish this paperwork and I am headed home. I will see you guys in the morning.”

“Alright!” Zoro fist pumped in the air, high-fiving his new friend and the three wandered off out back towards Usopp's work station. This was probably a bad idea, but she knew Usopp could handle Zoro if he really needed to. And if things when to shit, drunk or not, Zoro would have Usopp's back when it came to this blond.


	2. Lionfish

The cheery ping of his smartphone let Sanji know that his device was ready to receive his vocal command, and as he spoke the pitch of his voice climbed higher from anxiety when the painful stretch of his raw and swollen flesh made him flinch, "Siri, I have a tattoo?! What the fuck do I DO?"

Craning his neck. Sanji did his best to see more of his back without twisting too much. His damn shoulder and back burned like the fucking flames of hell. In fact, when he had first woken up, Sanji had thought he'd gotten injured on a stove or something. The sensation was hot, tight, and painfully swollen - also the mark felt like it was tearing open when he tried to contort in a way so as to see how big the damn thing actually was. Maybe it was actually ripping a little, because as the hell-cherry on this fucking cake of a situation he'd found dried blood on his sheets that morning. How had this happened? He'd gone out simply to celebrate the biggest break in his career to date with his two best friends. The plan HAD been to get stupidly drunk, have a good time, and have his trusted friends escort him home in one piece… and without new additions to his anatomy. However, he only knew for sure that the first part of his plan had worked. Obviously it had all gone to hell from there, but he didn't remember a damn thing besides losing track of the shots he'd taken and trying out a few new options that weren't on tap. 

"Looking." He lifted his smartphone to watch as the loading symbol spun on the screen. A web search popped up with a motley collection of unhelpful links like; 'Tattoo Artists: What Tattoos Have You Ever Refused to Do…?' and, 'How Many Tattoos Does Tynisha Keli Have?' He didn't even fucking know who Tynisha Keli WAS! And he sure as fuck didn't care about HER tattoo drama!

Dropping his phone on the edge of his sink, Sanji whined in his throat and scrubbed at his face with his hands. His head hurt, his motherfucking, shitty TATTOO hurt, and he was about eighty percent sure he could already feel viral Hepatitis killing him from the inside. He only couldn't be one hundred percent sure because no matter how many times he spun in a circle trying to see the whole thing, (it was in an awkward place on his back goddammit!) he still couldn't remember how it had gotten there in the first place, much less WHERE he'd gotten it done. Paranoid thoughts about dirty needles and flesh rotting off his spine kept popping up in his poor, hungover brain. He had to figure this out and track down the bastard who had taken advantage of his drunkenness to make a buck - at the very least to find out if he was at risk for any exotic diseases… Also maybe they had some sort of 'return' policy and he could get this removed free of charge within a certain time period? That would be great. 

He turned around again, chewing his lip to distract from the sharp burn as he examined as much of the tattoo as he could. Curling his arm and bending it awkwardly to reach his back, Sanji gingerly traced the intricate lines of the elegant image of a lionfish that was now carved into his skin. At least he hadn't gotten some shitty cartoon character, or a dick on his face. He had to admit that at least the art was well done. It was almost a shame that tattoos really weren't his thing…

Speaking of which… This HAD to be Law's fault. The fucker had been after him for YEARS to get a tattoo, but Sanji had always refused on the basis of the professionalism and personal presentation that was necessary in his line of work. Had his friend used alcohol to try and lead Sanji over to the dark side of fashion - the nightmare world filled with leather, piercings, and tattoos everywhere? 

Sanji frowned at himself in the mirror as he tried to settle on the best way to murder his friend and then hide the body. However, first he needed to hear Law's side of the story. For all he knew, he could have punched Law in the face and run screaming and drooling like a lunatic into a tattoo shop all of his own volition. It was unlikely, but possible. He didn't want to brutally murder a good friend over something that wasn't actually his fault. Maybe.

Yanking open his medicine cabinet and hissing at the burning shock of pain in his back, Sanji grabbed a bottle of pain reliever and dry-swallowed the pills. Snatching up his phone again, Sanji angrily texted Law as he wandered out of his bathroom, still only wearing his boxers. He really didn't want to even think of getting dressed until that aspirin kicked in. 'What the fuck happened last night?! Why do you always have to go and fuck with me, and fucking ruin everything? You KNOW how I feel about tattoos!!!!!'

Sanji started his electric kettle and pulled out a bowl for cereal as he impatiently waited for Law to text him a reply. If he didn't get an answer in the next five minutes he was going to call and scream until he felt better. He was in the middle of stirring a spoonful of honey into his freshly-brewed cup of tea when his phone rang. After seeing that the caller was indeed his friend, Sanji answered it with a black scowl on his face, "Yeah?"

"Don't 'yeah' me, what the hell, Sanji? You text me with that shitty attitude out of the blue? You owe me some explanation. Start with that ambiguous shit about tattoos?" 

Snarling into his phone, Sanji felt his temper rise as heat throbbed painfully along his back. "Out of the blue my ass! What did you expect after you took advantage of me? I HAVE A GODDAMN TATTOO, LAW!"

Law's incredulous snort of laughter on the other end of the call was infuriating, "You got a tattoo last night?! No wonder you're pissed."

"Yeah. And it's your fault, you shitty bastard!"

"Now hold on…" Law sounded confused, "How is that MY fault? You were perfectly tattoo-less when Eustass and I left you at the bar to get some sleep!"

"You left me there alone?! Do you know how drunk I was?!"

"You weren't alone… You were with that, uh… guy?"

"Just a 'guy'? You don't even know his fucking name and you thought this guy was an acceptable person to take me home?! It's amazing I didn't end up murdered in a ditch somewhere!" 

Sanji could practically hear Law's eyes rolling through the phone, "But you're fine. Listen, I'm coming over. I want to see this 'tattoo' of yours." 

Law ended the call before Sanji could protest, and he was left feeling unsatisfied with only a cup of cooling tea to hear his complaints. Sulking the entire time, Sanji drank his lukewarm tea and ate his cereal. As he chewed, he browsed through articles on tattoo removal on his phone, and frankly, it was horrifying. Bloody pictures and nightmare accounts of raging infections had Sanji feeling nauseous. Suddenly, fixing his drunken mistake seemed worse then the consequences of leaving things as they were. Would having a tattoo really reflect on his supposed character that badly in this modern age?

The doorbell rang, and Sanji jerked in surprise. His friend had made freakishly good time… unless maybe Law had been at work and he'd just ditched a class-full of poor medical students in a lab somewhere. In fact, now that he had thought of it, Sanji was certain that was exactly what had happened. He pitied the poor freshmen that had his shitty friend as their Adjunct Professor. 

Not giving a shit if Law saw him in his state of undress, Sanji opened the door and stepped aside when Law burst inside in a rush of feathers from that damn, gaudy coat, and smelling of formaldehyde. Sanji wrinkled his nose as he kicked the door shut, "You stink."

Law ignored the accusation like always and was obviously looking over every exposed inch of Sanji's body, "So where is it? I have a bet with Eustass. He thinks it's some generic tribal design, because he said that you have all the fashion sense of a baby-boomer going through his midlife-crisis…" Sanji snorted at the insult, but didn't interrupt, "But I said that since you are more hormonal than a roomful of teenaged boys with a playboy magazine, I decided to bet that it's a nude chick."

Fortunately for Law, Sanji's back hurt too much for him to give the snarky bastard the black eye that he deserved. So he settled for giving him a look the let Law know that he WOULD get his revenge. Letting the teasing drop, Sanji raised an eyebrow, "Stacy already knows? Weren't you at work? Don't tell me you were texting at work Mr. Professor!"

Law gave him a warning look, "He'd break your nose if he heard you calling him that. You know he hates that nickname! And yeah, I was in class, but those brats will get over it. It's the first day of the semester and all they need to do is read the damn syllabus. The first assignment is just some reading - and of course I'll give them a pop quiz on it next class... Now would you fucking turn your ass around?"

Rolling his eyes, Sanji obediently turned so Law could finally see the tattoo, "I'll call that shitty carrot whatever the fuck I want. He's just as guilty for leaving me there as you. Also I hope they fire your ass. You are so horrible to your students as well as your friends."

"Just… Shut up." Sanji grinned and turned his head to catch Law's expression. Instead of the annoyance he was hoping for, Law was staring a Sanji's back with wide eyes. 

"Holy shit, Sanji." Law's tone of voice sounded genuinely awed, "Who did this? It's fucking gorgeous!"

"I don't remember. Actually I don't remember ANYTHING from last night past Stacy ordering more shots!" 

However, Law seemed to have no more interest in their usual exchange of insults. "I need a better look at this…"

Sanji went with it when Law tugged him back from the doorway and into better light, "So you really didn't make me get this tattoo?"

"Fuck no. Hell, I wish I had! I want to know who your artist is! He'd be perfect to do the chest piece I've been planning on getting…" Looking back over his shoulder, Sanji gritted his teeth at the sting when Law carefully prodded at the swollen skin around the design, "Why haven't you been putting the A&D on this? Doesn't it hurt?"

"Like being stabbed with a motherfucking knife coated in acid… What is A&D?"

Law's expression was equal parts appalled and amused, "You know what? Sometimes you are exactly as dumb as you look. Why on earth didn't you try to find out how to fix it if it's hurting you so bad? If you don't take care of it, you'll ruin the tattoo you know!"

Sanji's protests that he didn't CARE if he ruined the tattoo - since he wasn't keeping it - went unheard as Law dragged him into the small bathroom. "First we need to clean this… " Law snagged a fresh washcloth and examined Sanji's bar soap off the sink before giving it a grunt of approval and lathering up the cloth under the tap.

Fidgeting as he sat on the closed toilet seat, Sanji watched at Law squeezed out some of the extra water from the cloth, "You don't have to bother with this you know. I'm going to get it removed."

Law narrowed his eyes at him dangerously as he loomed over Sanji with a dark expression, "You can't be serious. Whoever the artist is, they obviously put a lot of work into this piece, and it looks damn good on you too. Are you really such an uptight prick that you would destroy someone's hard work? Work that you must have paid a lot of money for?"

Sanji paled and flinched as Law leaned over him to gently clean his raw flesh with the cool cloth. "Something like this is really that expensive…? Shit, but my job…!"

"It's on your fucking back, dumbass! No one at your job has to know! I know guys who do this kind of detailed work who book clients months in advance, and drive around in cars with every cool customization available. So yeah, this tattoo isn't cheap."

Law was quiet for a long moment as he continued to ignore Sanji's slightly pained squirming. Sanji tried to distract himself from the sharp sting by counting the tiles on his wall, but even the gentlest strokes of the washcloth were irritating. He hissed in pain when the washcloth snagged briefly on a scab, pulling at the raw flesh. Law carefully freed the fibers from the cloth without more pulling when Sanji growled at him. Law only paused a moment before resuming his task. "It'll hurt less when I get the ointment on it." Sanji nodded. That was the closest to an apology that he was going to hear from his friend.

After a short while, Law broke the silence between them, "Do you really hate this tattoo that much?" Sanji gave Law a startled look and he shrugged, "It's a shame, that's all. It really does look amazing. All that blue… Makes me almost wish I'd gotten my linework done in a color other than black…"

Standing, Sanji turned and looked at the intricate fish on his back again. He could see the blue color better now that his poor skin wasn't as red. Law was right - it did look good on him. Sanji actually felt kind of badass as he studied the flowing spines and the sharply detailed stripes of the lionfish that was depicted flaring its fins aggressively. He'd never seen a tattoo quite like this one… He chewed his lip as he felt genuinely conflicted.

He hadn't realized that Law had left the room until his friend startled him with a short laugh from the doorway before reentering, "Admiring how pretty you look?"

"Shut up." Sanji shot Law a glare before giving the reflection of his tattoo one last lingering glance, "Tattoos are sexy, right?"

Law's smirk seemed to ooze sensuality as he gave Sanji a knowing look, "Eustass can never keep his eyes, or hands, or tongue off of them."

Sanji made a face, "I didn't need to hear that."

Laughing, Law held up a little bottle, "Okay, this is the stuff you need to put on to help the tattoo heal. It'll feel nice and cool."

"Well then hurry the fuck up!" Law's smirk grew wider as he popped the cap, but Sanji really didn't care. he just wanted his back to stop burning.

Moaning in relief, Sanji didn't give a shit when Law laughed a him again as he spread on that wonderful ointment. "Oh god, that feels so much better."

Law hummed in agreement, "I told you so. Now follow the instructions on this bottle. Make sure you wear something you don't mind ruining, and if the shirt is sticking to the tattoo, get it wet before you take it off. Make sure you look up how to take care of it properly, okay? You should have gotten instructions, but I have no fucking clue where those would be." Sanji nodded meekly and Law grinned victoriously, "Okay. Now I need to go collect on my bet."

Sanji raised an eyebrow, "But you both got it wrong?"

Law smirked as he walked out of the apartment with Sanji trailing behind him, "Sure. That just means we'll have take turns blowing each other. Because we both lose."

"GODDAMMIT LAW!" Sanji slammed the door, blushing a little as he heard Law's loud laugh on the other side. That shameless bastard…! He only hoped that his neighbors hadn't heard that exchange.

Now that his mini-crisis was under control, Sanji wandered into his bedroom to get dressed - yawning as he idly scratched his scalp. It didn't hurt as much to lift his arms anymore. Thank fuck for aspirin and A&D! He pulled on a pair of clean, black slacks before checking the time on his phone. 

"OH SHIT!" Sanji flung his phone on the bed and hurriedly pulled an old, faded-green shirt from his closet. He quickly buttoned it up, and tucked it in before hopping in place and cursing as he pulled on his socks. Bending like that hurt, but he was going to be late if he tried to dress more carefully! He slid his wallet into his back pocket and put on his favorite silver watch before recovering his phone from the bed. Holding it in his mouth, Sanji clumsily threaded a belt through the appropriate loops on his pants before grabbing his keys, slipping on his shoes and rushing out the door. 

With the distraction of the mysterious tattoo and his mind still a little sluggish from his lingering hangover, Sanji had completely forgotten about this appointment today... Back when he had landed the big contract with the exclusive Grandline Hotel, (the selfsame contract he'd been out celebrating last night,) Sanji had immediately gone out and gotten a new suit. He would need it to impress his very wealthy and influential new clients at the upcoming meeting when they would look over his proposals for their internationally famous Winter Gala. This was the event that would make or break his career and he couldn't afford to be stingy and overlook little details - like wearing a three-year-old suit. His reputation as a Chocolate Artisian was on the line here!


	3. Chance

Zoro woke with a groan and rolled over, gripping at his pillow as he tried to bury his head back into the blankets. He knew it wasn't his boss, having set the alarm before he left last night, so there was no way he was late for work. The noise of his ring tone stopped and he exhaled in relief, only now realizing he had been holding his breath.

It was quiet for only a second before the, right now, obnoxious rock song that was his ring tone started up again. Rolling back to face the phone, the pain in his head now exploding with his sudden movement, Zoro picked up the phone and blinked at it blearily.

_Chopper._

“Shit!” Sitting up and ignoring the throbbing of his head, he slid his thumb over the button and cleared his throat. “Hey kiddo, what's up?”

“ _Zoro!”_ He could hear the tears in the young man's voice and instantly went into protective big brother mode, his voice dropping slightly as he asked what was wrong. _“I...I'm sorry! I tried to explain that we couldn't afford it, but, she wouldn't listen to me!”_

“What are you talking about?” Swinging his legs off the edge of the bed, Zoro tucked the phone between his shoulder and ear, stretching loudly and stood up. Man his head hurt. He had no idea what the hell those guys had been mixing last night, but shit they had gone down smooth and even he had gotten pretty smashed.

“ _I needed to get a new text book for class!”_ Chopper was still panicking on the other side of the phone, his small hiccups interrupting his words as he spoke. _“I haven't bought it yet and I have class in a half an hour. I have been trying to call you all morning.”_

Grunting, Zoro ran a hand down his face before moving into the bathroom and opening the medicine cabinet, taking out the bottle of pain killers he knew was in there. “How much?” He popped the pills into his mouth with a smack of his hand, ducking to drink right from the faucet.

“ _Two hundred sixty-three dollars and...”_ The phone went quiet for a moment, the rustling of papers the only sounds in the background. _“Thirty-five cents. That's a weird amount.”_

“What the hell is this book for Tony?!” Zoro choked on his mouthful of water, coughing and swallowing, wiping his mouth with the back of a hand.

“ _My anatomy class.”_ There was a sniffle and more rustling of papers.

With a sigh, he padded back out into the bedroom, sliding into the desk chair and opening up the laptop. “Okay, okay...I'm transferring funds now. You still have the debit card I gave you?”

“ _U-huh.”_ Zoro could just picture the kid nodding sharply over the phone. There was the jingle of keys and the slam of a door. _“I'm going to the book store to get it now! Are...are you going to be okay if I get this book?”_

“Don't worry about it Tony, you need the books for class. It's okay.” Typing in his account information, Zoro frowned at the small numbers that appeared, doing some quick mental calculations as he moved the exact amount from the savings to the checking. “If need be, I will just eat at Perona's or something. I can do some extra shit for Usopp too and just have him buy me lunch instead of more tattoos.”

“ _You're the best big brother ever Zoro!”_

“I'm your only big brother Chopper, I better be.” Glancing at the computer clock, he rolled his eyes. “Hey kid, I gotta get ready for work. Take a shower and brush my teeth. Went out last night, ya know.”

“ _You did?! Where did you go?!”_ Chopper laughed into the phone and Zoro couldn't help but grin as he closed the laptop lid and padded over to the closet to go through his clothing for work.

“Ah no, I can't tell you. You have to be over eighteen for me to talk to you about this.”

“ _Do we need to have_ the talk _again Zoro?”_

Snorting back a laugh, he pulled a black suit from the bar in his closet and hung it over the door frame. “Go to class you little punk. I expect a phone call tonight about what is in this new book and all that you learned today.”

“ _You're not going to like it. We are going over the female reproductive system today.”_

“Oh...” Zoro dragged out the word in a joking tone as he turned on the water to the shower, pulling off his sleep pants and tossing them back out the bathroom door. “Gross. Girls.” Chopper laughed and the other man couldn't help but smile at his little brother. “Okay, for real, I gotta go. I got a shower already running. I love ya Chopper, I will talk to you this afternoon.”

“ _I love you too! Bye!”_ There was a click and Zoro set his phone on the sink before climbing in the shower and carrying out his morning as he got ready to go to work.

 

 

* * *

 

“You're late Zoro.”

“I know, I'm sorry.” Ducking under the arm Robin had outstretched over the door, Zoro turned to face her as she closed the door and flicked the sign from closed to open. “I started on time, I swear. I even let Tony go so I could take a shower, but then I got caught by one of the neighbors in the hall and they didn't seem to understand that I needed to come to work. Got the whole lecture of how I'm a decent young man, so why am I covered in tattoos and piercings and...my hair...” Zoro rolled his eyes.

“Indeed.” The dark haired woman cut him off, stepping up to him and pulling the tie from around his neck and threading it back under his collar as she began to tie the knot for him. Zoro stood up a little straighter and let his boss make quick work of the one thing he was still unable to do. He just didn't get the stupid knots and there were so many of them! It seemed like everyday she did a different knot in his tie and he could never keep them straight. “How is your brother anyways?”

The green haired man bit his lip, pulling it into his mouth as the woman stepped back from him a pace, smoothing out his suit lapels and flicking some dirt from his shoulder. “He's good. We had to buy him a new book today though, so...” Trailing off, Zoro shrugged and ran a hand through his still damp hair. “It's gonna be a little tighter than normal this month. I don't want Tony to worry, so I try not to tell him. I feel bad about going out last night though now. I wasn't expecting another book.”

“You are an exceptional big brother and the responsibility that has been laid on you is something no young man should have to deal with.” With a sharp nod, Robin dismissed the entire conversation and turned back into the store, her heels clicking loudly on the tiles before she crossed over onto the carpet and disappeared out back.

“So...” the drawn out word in the gravely tone drew Zoro's attention towards the register on the far side of the shop. “How'd it go last night?”

“Yeah, thanks for ditching me you jerk.” Pointing to Perona, Zoro started over towards her, pausing to fix one of the suits on the rack as he went. The pink haired girl faked shock, a splayed hand over her chest as her mouth dropped open. “But it was awesome! There was this guy...”

“Oh?” Sitting on the stool behind the register, Perona gave her co worker a grin. “Was he cute?”

“Oh man, yes.” Nodding, he busied himself fixing up the racks and Zoro talked as he worked, occasionally glancing over to the girl as she folded fliers for the day. “He was with a couple other guys, but the four of us got along really well. We all got pretty drunk...”

“You got drunk?”

“Yeah! I have no idea what the redhead was ordering, but damn...it fucked me up! And it was so good, so smooth. I really wish I could remember what it was called. Anyways,” Zoro moved to a different rack, thumbing through hangars and switching one every so often. “So blondie,”

“Blondie? What you don't know his name?” Raising an eyebrow at him, she crossed her arms.

“I may have gotten it, but I don't remember that either.” Zoro gave a shrug, before grinning broadly at her. “I also called him Cook.”

“Wow...really Zoro?” Perona rolled her eyes and giggled before hoping off the stool and moving to join him at the racks.

“Oh shut up.” Shoving her in the shoulder, the two moved to what was dubbed the wall of ties and began the daily swap out of the display colors. “Anyways, we ended up at Blue and well...he got this tattoo and Usopp just pulled it out of his ass! This amazing fucking fish on his shoulder, it's awesome.”

“Then what happened?” Perona bumped her hip into his playfully, turning to face him and fluttering her eyelashes at him. “Did you kiss him? Is he your boyfriend?”

Zoro sighed, moving to roll a dark blue tie to set back on the shelf and replacing it with a weird patterned green and black one. “I wish. I fell asleep on the couch. Usopp woke me and sent me home after he got him in a cab. Last I saw him, he was shirtless and leaning over Usopp's chair.”

“Perona, Zoro...we have a new client who will be here any time how. They called the other day. They need a nice suit, something more on the classy side for an important business meeting he has.” Robin's voice floated out to them from out back in the employee area. “Do finish up your gossip before they arrive.”

“Okay!” Both replied at the same time, grinning at one another at how cool their boss really was. Both had landed their jobs by chance, Perona as the model for one of Franky's steam punk attire shows and Zoro out of desperation. It wasn't something he liked to talk about, but he had pretty much begged Robin to hire him, his argument of needing and wanting to put his little brother through college without him having to work finally swaying her.

The one stipulation being that none of his tattoos were allowed to show when he was wearing the suit that was required for the position. Honestly, he looked good in them, wearing stock right from the floor as a model as well as an employee, but he hated wearing the damned things. They felt stiff and the tie almost felt like it was choking him, but it was all for Tony and so Zoro pushed through it.

Over the couple years he had been here though Robin had begun to let him do a little more of what he wanted and on certain days he was allowed to go without the tie and even without the jacket, able to roll his shirt sleeves and let his tattoo sleeves show. He was pretty sure that Franky, Robin's husband and co-owner had soemthing to do with that. The man himself had tattoos and he was always talking to Zoro about his newest one or the plan for which one he was going to get next.

Perona was usually dressed in something that was a little out there, Franky's designs always new and changing. The freaking man was a damned tech genius and Robin had mentioned time and again how he was wasting his talents on creating clothing no one would ever buy, instead of working for that high tech corporation that wanted to hire him. The older man usually laughed with some comment to ruffle his wife's feathers before dragging Perona off to try on his latest set of design ideas.

It was fun to pick on her sometimes when she looked more like the internal workings of a clock than his co worker. “Wonder who this client is? Most likely you're up Zoro. I doubt they are here for the steam punk.”

“Most likely.” Zoro grunted at her, stepping back from the wall to inspect their work. “Probably some stuck up...” The door bell rang and cut him off, the young man snapping his mouth shut as to not have their conversation overheard by a potential customer. He snapped an arm out, grasping tight to Perona's upper arm as he pulled her close to him and ducked behind the wall that the ties were on.

“Ow!” She pulled away from him, shoving him in the chest and hissing at him in a whisper. “The hell Zoro?!”

“That's him!” Gripping at his hair, Zoro tugged at the short damp strands, waving at the wall and implying the person on the other side. “That's the guy!”

“Him?” Perona looked out around the display, frowning. “He's not even that cute. Really? You can do so much better than that.” Wrinkling her nose, she turned back to Zoro. “I mean...I know you have no fashion sense, but even you dress better than that.”

“Shut! Up!” Growling, he stood up straight again, tugging at the bottom of his suit coat and straightening his tie. “How do I look?”

“Like a dork.” Rolling her eyes, Perona waved her hands at her coworker. “Go on. Go impress your boyfriend.”

“Whatever.” Clearing his throat, Zoro ducked around the display, an actual smile on his face for once instead of the fake one he usually wore. The cook did look a bit off this morning, the faded green shirt wasn't that bad though, but it wasn't nearly as nice as the clothing he had been wearing the night before.

He wanted to ask him about the tattoo. To strike up the personal conversation that so desperately wanted to crawl out of his mouth, but the other man was looking around and standing a bit stiff. Man, Zoro had forgotten what watching someone with their first tattoo was like. It did take all his effort to remain professional as he approached the blond. Once they had started on the fittings that surely were in order, he could easily slide in the comments about the night before and go from there. “Good morning. How may I help you today?”


	4. Boys are stupid

Perona watched as this blond snapped his attention from looking around to Zoro, the small smile that had been on his face giving way to a judgmental sneer, one corner of his lip curling up in disgust as he took in her co-worker's appearance. Okay, granted Zoro did stand a little out there, the green hair and the earrings kinda giving him an unapproachable look, but he looked damn cute in a suit and he did his job well.

Shoulders were a bit too broad and the black work boots that peeked out from under the cuffs of his slacks were always making Robin roll her eyes, but that's just who Zoro was. Personally Perona thought Zoro did rather well considering when he wasn't working there was more skin than jean to his jeans and all his shirts were stained. That is...if he was even wearing a shirt. The young man tended to work out much of his free time and was always complaining it was too hot, arms crossed and his shirt stuffed in his back pocket. He could be intimidating, maybe, just a tad, when a new customer walked through the door, but once people got over the hair and actually realized that, yes, he did in fact work there and he did know what he was talking about, Zoro usually made the sale.

“I'm here for my appointment.” The blond rasped out and Perona instantly caught the tone of a smoker. “My name is Sanji Black. I should be in the books. Shall I wait for the tailor to arrive?”

“No,” Zoro replied, his voice losing that cheerfulness it had just moments before. Perona moved from behind the wall to watch what was going on. From this angle she still wasn't able to see Zoro's face, but she did see his shoulders stiffen slightly as he fell back into that normal state of professionalism that came over him when someone passed judgment on him by looks alone. “I will be assisting you today. Miss Nico is extremely busy at the moment. My name is Zoro. Did you have something in mind already?”

Turning, Zoro moved back to the desk, his eyes meeting Perona's for a split second as he scanned the store for where she had gone. He may have been the actual floor manager, but he was always making sure she was close by for the particularly mean customers and it seemed like this guy was going to be one of them. Either this Sanji character didn't remember Zoro and that hurt was clear in her coworker's eyes or he was just a jerk and she would need to be cracking some skulls.

“I do. In fact I know exactly what I want, as I told the lovely woman I talked to the other day.” The blond moved with him, one hand in a pocket as he came to stand with his back to her. “It's a European style suit. Black preferably, virgin wool, five pocket jacket and four in the slacks.”

Zoro nodded, flipping a page in the date book on the counter and tapping at part of it. “Yes, you are right here. She made a note here...” He trailed off, tapping at it again and rubbing at the back of his neck. So he was nervous, Perona figured he was. His eyes flicked over Sanji's shoulder once more to her as he dropped his hand back to the counter.

_Seriously?!_ She mouthed, waving a hand at the back of the man between them.  _This guy?!_ Giving Zoro a look as her fists hit her hips, her expression clear that she  _knew_ he could do better, she exhaled sharply through her nose and rolled her eyes.

Zoro's expression remained blank as he blinked at her once in acknowledgment before moving back out onto the floor. “Our European stock is over here.” Motioning with a hand, he waited till Sanji was past him before turning and flipping Perona off, the look on his face screaming  _just shut the fuck up! We will talk about this later!_

“Whatever.” The pink haired girl mumbled under her breath, moving to refold some of the dress shirts, but still able to keep an eye on what blondie was up to.

Sanji flicked through several of the suits on one side of the double rack while Zoro carefully and quietly moved some on the other. He knew where pretty much everything was and how it was placed in the store. His attention to the detail of the place impressing even Robin when he started. Zoro gave no hints outside this place that he cared about his job, but once he was here this was his world. All to put little Tony Tony through college.

Perona watched, hands mindlessly refolding a shirt as her coworker pulled pretty much exactly what this jerk was looking for from the rack and held it up, one hand moving under the base of the jacket to smooth it out a little more. “I think this is what you are looking for. It matches all the specs you listed. Shall we check the fittings?”

Barely repressing the snort of laughter that threatened to break out, the pink haired girl set the shirt down and narrowed her eyes as Sanji turned to Zoro. To hear him speak so professionally when normally Zoro had a beer in hand and was cursing always struck her funny. The blond reached out, rubbing the corner of the jacket between his fingers as he tapped a finger against his chin.

Really...what did Zoro see in this guy? He seemed like a stuck up jerk to her. Then again, he was sober now and if all Zoro had seen was him drunk than this may be how he acted all the time. There was something in the way he was looking at Sanji, some longing and regret mixed together that flitted across those expectant eyes. If she had to admit, Perona was glad Zoro was finally showing some interest in someone, he had been so caught up in providing everything for his little brother that other than his tattoos, his personal life had gone down the drain.

“This is...” Sanji started, then stopped snapping his jaw shut and nodding sharply. “Very well. This will take some time I assume. Would it be an issue if I went for a cigarette before we began?”

“Not at all.” Giving the man a sharp nod, Zoro watched as the blond spun on his heel and walked out of the small shop. Walking over to the counter, carefully he set the suit down on it and bent to retrieve the small notepad, pencil and measuring tape that was kept there.

The second the door clicked shit, Perona slammed her hands on the glass counter. “Roronoa Zoro!” There was a thump with a rattle of glass and Zoro stood, rubbing at the back of his head and glaring at her. He barked a “what?!” at her and she waved a finger in his face. “No! There is no way.”

With a frown, her coworker let his whole body slump. Tapping the pencil eraser on the counter top, he shrugged. “He seemed so much nicer last night. I know he was drunk...but, how do you not remember someone?”

“Forget that for a moment. I mean, he doesn't even come from our side of the tracks if you know what I mean. He's so straight laced it makes me sick.” Hissing at him, she leaned across the counter and snatched the notepad and tape. “I got this! You keep a watch on the front.”

“But...”

“Ah! Ah! No buts! The guy's a jerk and I don't like the way he was treating you.” Zoro rolled his eyes at that comment but wisely knew to keep quiet. Pouting Perona balled her hands into fists and rested them on her hips. “He thinks he's better than you and he's not.”

“How...” Reaching out to cuff him across the side of the head, Perona stomped her foot as Zoro wisely ducked the swing.

“You are raising your little brother and give him _everything_ even at the cost of your own happiness. I'm so glad you are taking the initiative to look, but please...”

“I got this.” Zoro growled at her, snatching the notepad back. “If I need you, I will come get you. Okay?” The door opening again was his only saving grace and with a stomp of her foot, Perona wandered off onto the floor again. Sanji smiled sweetly at her as he passed and she had to swallow the bile that rose in her throat. What an ass! He was playing nice and cool to her, but being a jerk to the one who may actually give him a shot. “All set?” Zoro's voice had his typical husky tone back to it and for that Perona was glad. He had calmed down a little and wasn't nearly as worked up now.

She was still upset he was was refusing to let her interfere but their little spat seemed to have side tracked him enough for the time being. With narrowed eyes, she watched the two cross outback to the fitting area and listened as Zoro closed a door and began the list of instructions required. No removing tags, leave undergarments on and socks so they could fit shoes as well if need be. Sanji replied with a bored drawl and things fell silent for a moment.

Franky and Robin both came out of the back at this point as well. The shop owners looked about the front before Robin spotted her and rested a hand on her husband's arm, pointing towards Perona and speaking lowly.

“Ow! Alright let's go Perona! I got something I want to show you. I need your opinion.”

“But the front!”

“I will watch the front Perona.” Robin moved to the counter, setting a book down on it and pulling the stool over to it. She sat quietly and rested her chin in the palm of a hand. “Zoro is with our customer I assume?”

“Yes.” With a curt reply, she walked over to Franky and the two made their way outback of the shop. They passed Zoro, who was rubbing at his temples and he looked up to them as they walked by, a weary look on his face already. Sanji opened the door then, hands fisted in the jacket as he held out the lapels and looked at the inside pockets.

“This way.” Holding out a hand, Zoro led him over to the small step and the mirror wall.

“Perona,” Franky drew her attention and she flicked her gaze over to him as he grinned and pointed to his newest project. Honestly, the colors were perfect, blacks with whites and pinks. The gear punk came out in the thin metal wires and black cogs that littered the base of the shirt and the one shoulder strap. The gear work there looked like some sort of mechanical flower and her breath caught in her throat.

“It's perfect!” Running over to it and forgetting all about Zoro for the moment, Perona walked around the outfit, wanting to touch but not daring to do so. Balling her hands into fists, she stomped excitedly in place and tried her hardest to contain her excitement.

“Go on.” Waving a hand at her, Franky flicked a pair of glasses over his eyes as he sat at his work bench. “I need to see it on you anyways.”

“Yay!” With a squeak, she pulled the garment off the wall and ran for the changing rooms. Slamming the door shut, Perona hung it on the hook and took a deep breath in an effort to calm down.

Zoro's annoyed sigh rang out to her from the other side of the thin wall followed by Sanji's smoke laced tone. Just from the sound alone she knew things weren't going well for Zoro. Even if Sanji wasn't giving him a hard time anymore and from the tones of the words, he wasn't, not really, but this was when Zoro usually struck up some sort of conversation with the customer.

It was very quiet compared to normal and Zoro's laughter had yet to ring out around the back room. “Perona!” Franky yelled out and she jolted into motion instead of frowning blankly at the wall while she thought about her co worker.

“Hold on a sec!” The outfit was rather easy to get into, but the strap on her shoulder actually fastened in the back and there was no way she could reach it. Holding one arm across her chest, as to not let the dress drop, she opened the door and stepped out. “Zoro. I need you for a second.”

“'Sec, Perona.” Zoro turned his head a little to speak to her before finishing up a measurement across the blond's shoulders and writing it down in his book. Setting the items down, Zoro excused himself and walked up to her, arms crossed. “What's up?”

“Can you do this for me?” Raising the strap a little, she pouted up at him and he simply huffed and rolled his eyes before moving behind her to link it. Sanji moving caught her attention and she watched as he removed the jacket and carefully set it over the back of the chair. As he stood, his shirt clung awkwardly to his shoulder and Perona could see the telltale clothing stick of a new tattoo. So this was the same guy. There was no mistaking it now.

Reaching a hand back, she swung blindly, smacking Zoro where she hoped was the leg, but from his grunt, she was pretty sure she missed. “What?” He hissed in her ear and she grabbed his chin and turned him towards Sanji. She knew his eyes fell on the tattoo, the way his jaw went rigid in her grasp before he ripped away and stepped back from her. “Done. This looks cool actually. We will talk later.”

Pushing on her shoulders, Zoro stepped around Perona and moved back towards Sanji. His eyes lingered on the mark, the darkness of the green fabric from the shirt soaking up the ointment and discharge of the tattoo, clear now that the jacket had been removed. Bending to pick up his notepad again, Perona grinned and couldn't help herself. One little lie couldn't hurt, right? “Oh! You have a tattoo?! Where'd you get it? I am thinking of getting a new one and my artist isn't in business anymore.”

“Perona!” Zoro hissed, standing up straight and giving her a murderous look. She tilted her head to the side with a smile and ignored the glare she was getting.

Sanji twisted around in an attempt to look at his back once more, frowning and showing the clear disgust on his face. “It's not something I wanted my dear. This is the result of my friends abandoning me at the bar with some guy. As soon as it's healed I plan on removing it.”

Zoro took one horrid step back. Usopp's work was some of the best in the city and his eyes widened at the mere suggestion that someone would willingly get rid of his friend's hard work. This man acted as if the tattoo was meaningless, just some scribbled crayon on a wall that could easily be removed. The single word sounded quietly and if the pink haired girl didn't know the other man as well as she did, she would have guessed he sounded broken. “Oh.”

Sanji opened his mouth to speak, closed it, then opened it again as his brows lowered in annoyance. “My personal issues are none of your concern.” He rasped out before turning back to Perona with that sickly sweet smile once more. “I have never had an interest in...defacing my body. My line of work has no call for it.”

Perona didn't even have time to respond to Sanji's harsh tone, before Zoro's voice cut through the air. As it were, the utter disappointment is his tone was clear, even to the blond as he turned and raised an eyebrow at him. “Why would you do that?” The green haired punk hissed, causing Sanji to snap his attention fully to him once more. “He put so much effort into that. And all the blue...”

“How the fuck would you know...” Sanji snapped his jaw shut as things fell into place. Jumping off the raised platform, he crowded into Zoro's face and Perona watched as her coworker fought with how to react. He didn't do well with people in his space, but he was at work after all. His hands flexed at his side, one balling into a fist before relaxing and repeating the motion.

The blond's voice was cold, his blue eyes hard as he glared at Zoro. Each word was growled out and dripping with venom, his stance one of someone who surely wanted a fight. What was such the big deal about one tattoo anyways? It was on his back and no one could see it. Perona inched away, closer towards Franky cause if this got out of hand, she knew he would have to be the one to break it up.

Zoro wasn't reacting though, letting this man get in his face. Either Zoro really liked this jerk or his brother meant more to him than even Perona had given thought to. “You're the fuck my shitty friends left me with last night aren't you?  _You're_ the reason I have this  _thing._ ”


	5. Showing Humility Through Pride

Sanji could feel the muscles in his own eye twitch as he stared down the giant ape in a suit that was standing there with a dumb look on his dumb face. He wanted so, so badly to rearrange this jackass's features with his heel, and the burning pain reviving in his shoulder only intensified his fury. "I SHOULD just leave and take my business to someone who's a decent human being and won't coerce a man who's had a few too many drinks into disfiguring his body…"

The green giant scowled with a not-so-jolly reaction to that accusation, "Now wait a second…"

But Sanji refused to let him interrupt, snarling louder over his attempt to make a shitty excuse, "The thought of YOU getting a commission from my purchase makes me sick! BUT I promised my business to lovely Miss Robin, and I NEVER break my promises to a lady… However, this fucking disaster is all your fault, and I fully expect you to pay to help me get this… this BLEMISH removed! And so help me, I will sue you for the cost if I have to!"

He stood there, shaking in anger and catching his breath as he watched the dumbass in front of him gaping in shock. "Sue…?!" The asshole shook his head and his incredulous expression changed rapidly into one of anger, "What the fuck are you talking about?!" 

"Zoro…" A massive, blue-haired man stepped closer to them - his tone low and warning.

"YOU were the one who asked me to take you to my artist! YOU were the one who sat there asking about my tattoos! You even fucking asked me to take my shirt off so you could see them! Obviously you're too fucking stupid to know when to stop drinking or you would remember this! NONE of this is my fault! And I sure as hell wouldn't have taken you to an amazing artist like my friend if I had known you were such an ungrateful, prejudiced prick!"

"Zoro!" The man with the blue hair reached out with a massive hand and tugged Sanji's opponent back, "Chill bro. You can't talk like that to a customer…"

The conversation between the two men before him faded into the confusion of his own thoughts as it was Sanji's turn to be flabbergasted, "You're lying! I would never…! I would never…" His nearly forgotten hangover throbbed behind his eyes with increasing insistence, and Sanji ground the heel of his palm against his closed eye in an attempt to relieve the pain and the pressure. The foggy void in his memory of last night changed as he struggled with this 'Zoro's' revelations. He felt the blood drain from his face when a wisp of recollection took form in the image of three intricate dragons, twining together down a muscular right arm. "Oh shit…" 

The cute shopgirl who had been lingering nearby spoke up in accusing tone, "You remember now, don't you? Zoro only did what you asked him to, and the tattoo was YOUR idea! You're being horrible and he's done nothing but be nice to you!"

Sanji felt a pang of guilt as he remembered Zoro's bright smile and booze-flushed cheeks as they stumbled down the street toward a neon-lit shop, laughing together like idiots. That scene triggered more recollections and Sanji saw in his mind a wall filled with beautiful drawings. There had been a third man - he could remember the excitement as the artist told him about the fish he was embedding in Sanji's skin, and he could almost feel the gentle touch of plastic gloves on his bare back… He'd fucked up. The Zoro he was starting to remember had been funny and interesting. If he hadn't made a colossal ass of himself today maybe they could have been great friends.

There was one more very important thing; he had wanted this tattoo. He had wanted it more than anything after he had seen those beautiful dragons writhing on Zoro's skin. The feeling of the tattooing gun had been strangely addictive - the pain had combined with the humming vibration of the gun and the guiding touch of the artist to create an exhilarating sensation that he wanted again and again… " _S'why you doin' a fish… thing? I like it - issa totally badass, fishie. But why_ … _?_ "

" _It's a lionfish._ " Dark curly hair bounced at the edge of his vision as the artist shifted closer to change the angle of his gun, " _I-it just seemed like it suited you. You know they may be pretty, but no one messes with a lionfish! They are clever and they have these poisonous spines_ … _I think they are amazing_ …" 

That artist had designed this tattoo specially for him; because he had thought that Sanji was someone who would appreciate his art. " _It's getting late. I'd love to expand on this - fill your back with all the cool fish I can think of! Maybe even a shark_..."

Sanji wanted a damn shark. He wanted to go back and be a part of that world again - with Zoro and the artist and his heart beating so fast he was dizzy… Oh fuck. He'd gone and said that he wanted his tattoo gone! What if Zoro told the artist the things that he had said? He needed to talk to him first - explain himself and his shitty alcohol tolerance. 

But he didn't know the guy's name and he couldn't even remember his face!

His aching brain was spinning with fragmented memories and the elusive emotional high he'd experienced in that tattoo shop as he tried to remember more… "You owe him a big, fat apology." Sanji lifted his gaze from where he'd been blankly staring at the floor to meet the pretty shopgirl's cold glare, "And until you get your stupid head out of your ass I'm not selling you that suit! I don't care what the others say!" Sanji's jaw dropped as she crossed her arms and added as an afterthought, "And I hate you! You are so un-cute!"

"You're right my dear. I've been awful. Can you forgive me?" Sanji really was ashamed of how he'd behaved in front of this sweet girl and the lovely Robin, who was watching coldly from behind the register. He racked his brain for a way to smooth things over here with everyone as the cute shopgirl stamped her foot in anger.

"Are you stupid? I'm not the one you should be apologizing to!" She gestured to where Zoro and the other man were conversing heatedly on the far side of the shop. Sanji's heart dropped when the green-haired shopclerk sent him a baleful glare. A simple 'I'm sorry' wasn't going to be enough.

Sanji nodded at the shopgirl, "You're right." He marched by her to Robin and nervously cleared his throat, "I owe you and your staff an apology for my behavior. Can I ask you to allow me to show my remorse for my rudeness?"

Robin's smile held no warmth, "I will allow it, but do not think I will forget this. I take pride in my shop and my staff, and I expect my customers to treat those things with respect."

Feeling a fresh wave of shame, Sanji bobbed his head enthusiastically, "It won't happen again! Today has been an… off day for me. But I should know better than to jump to the conclusions that I did." He backed toward the shop's entrance, "I'll be back in two hours to pay for the suit and the alterations, and I'll bring your staff a treat made by my own hand to demonstrate my sincerity. Is that acceptable?"

"You own Spirale de Chocolat, yes?" Sanji nodded silently and a Robin's lips curved in a sly smile, "I shall look forward to it then."

"Good! Great!" Sanji beamed ear-to-ear, "I won't disappoint you!"

He could see Zoro watching him with suspicion and he responded with a warm grin, noting the startled expression on Zoro's face before he turned to leave. The shopgirl was still glaring at him with crossed arms and he gave her a nod of assurance. Her eyes narrowed and she lifted one hand to gesture between them with two fingers in an 'I'm watching you' handsign. He was going to have to show his best work to impress her, and prove that he had only misunderstood things and bore her friend no ill will.

Normally he'd take the bus, but Sanji didn't want to waste any time he could be spending creating a masterpiece for Miss Robin. He flagged down a taxi and pulled out his phone as he stepped inside, "Third and fourth please."

"Yessir."

Sanji scrolled through his contacts list a moment before finding the number he needed, "Hewitt?"

"Boss?"

"Yeah, it's me. Listen, did you temper yesterday's batch yet?"

"Of course. You told me to take care of that this morning."

"Good. I'm coming in to take care of a special order."

He could hear a familiar, annoying voice through the cell demanding a cake the size of a taxi. Hewitt's tone was strained as he answered, "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that."

"He's there, huh? I'll take care of that too…"

Ending the call with a sigh, Sanji tried to get comfortable as he watched the crowds of people outside. The damn tattoo was getting painful again, and now his shirt was sticking to the wound - feeling awkwardly stiff in spots from fluids, and tugging harshly at the abused flesh whenever he shifted. In his mind's eye he could see that little bottle of A&D sitting on his bathroom sink, and he silently berated himself for leaving it behind. That cool, thick gel would feel amazing right now. Sanji let out an irritated grunt as he shifted again, unable to find a position to fully relieve the persistent burn. 

The taxi pulled over to the curb and the driver turned in his seat, "Is here okay?"

"Yeah, thanks." Sanji paid the driver and got out onto the sidewalk. It was a short walk down the block to his storefront. Sanji hesitated outside, patting himself down for a pack of cigarettes. "Well shit…" He gave up the search with a sigh, realizing that he'd left his precious smokes behind as well in his rush earlier. It was a good thing that he kept a spare pack and lighter in his office. However, he still hesitated, seeing his most persistent, and irritating regular customer through the shop's front window. The dumbass appeared to be trying to climb the display case while Hewitt was shoving him back.

Squaring his shoulders, Sanji marched through the door, straight up to the protesting customer and grabbed the young man by the ear. He mercilessly pulled him off the display case while the young man wailed and howled, "OW, OW, OW! THAT HURTS, SANJI!"

"What the hell were you doing, Luffy?" Sanji growled and released his captive, but threateningly made a pinching gesture.

Luffy sulkily rubbed at his ear, "I was just trying to watch them make the cakes! I already paid for them. I promise!"

He didn't have enough nicotine in his system to deal with this right now.

"Fine. But you have to wash your hands, and sit very still. And if you touch anything I. Will. Kill. You!"

A huge smile bloomed across his face as Luffy nodded vigorously in agreement, "I won't touch or sit!"

"No! You WILL sit! Oh whatever…" 

Sanji stalked through the counter door that Hewitt was holding open for him with Luffy in tow. He made a beeline for the office, snatching his cigarettes and lighter from the drawer before going back into the kitchen. Hewitt was still out front, but Sanji's other employee, Billy, was hard at work. Using a toothpick, he was meticulously swirling white chocolate designs into the smooth layer of chocolate coating the three medium-sized cakes. Luffy had his palms on the edge of the counter, bouncing with barely-constrained energy as his eyes never left Billy's skilled hands. 

Tapping a cigarette out of his pack, Sanji cast his eyes over the design before grunting in approval. Billy was his newest employee and the small mistakes he'd made would be unacceptable for any client other than Luffy, but he was showing real improvement. "Watch your consistency. I'm going out back for a smoke."

"Right! Okay… Uh, Mr. Monkey… You can't just…!"

Sanji rolled his eyes at the sight of Luffy creeping ever closer to his goal. Leaving the two idiots to their own devices, he lit the cigarette resting between his lips and stepped out the back door. Relief flooded his frayed senses as Sanji breathed in the pleasantly bitter smoke. "Damn, I needed this…" Today had been insane. From memory loss, to embarrassingly losing his cool in front of ladies, as well as making an enemy of the man who'd taken care of him last night - honestly he couldn't imagine things getting much shittier. At least he had a chance to mend his reputation and apologize. Maybe this disaster of a day could become a good thing… For example, if he could get on that green-haired fucker's good side again maybe he could get to know friendly, funny man he was starting to remember from last night. He could always use a drinking buddy who wouldn't leave him to fend for himself - unlike SOME of his shitty friends.

He absently watched a distant jet trail across the sky. The contrail it left behind looked soft and fluffy against the blue expanse. It reminded Sanji of mousse or whipped cream. "Hm, maybe a semi-sweet, dark chocolate for the cup, chocolate mousse, and raspberries…" 

Breathing out smoke in a satisfied sigh, Sanji dropped his finished cigarette and ground it into the dirt under his foot. It was time to get to work. He had over an hour, but a lot that he wanted to do.  

Luffy was seated on the prep table eating the last of the cakes that Billy had been finishing earlier. Sanji had to wonder how much had actually gone into the young man's stomach - there were chocolate and cake crumbs everywhere, including smears on his face and hands. He made a sound of disgust as he surveyed the mess, "Haven't you ever heard of a fucking fork?!" 

Grinning broadly, Luffy sucked the sticky mess off his fingers, "Your chocolate is th'best, Sanji!"

Sanji huffed, "Of course it is! Now get the hell out of my kitchen so I can disinfect that table!"

Luffy laughed and jumped down, "I'm going to go buy another cake!"

"I hope you get a damn stomachache!"

Grumbling at Luffy's cheerful brush-off, Sanji efficiently went through the familiar steps of cleaning the workstation. Once he could see his reflection in the stainless steel again, he began to set up the ingredients and tools he would need. Humming some ballad he remembered from the radio, Sanji outlined his designs on the wax paper and began to fill them in. Some were simple curls and mindless geometric patterns, but others were easily recognizable. 

Sanji blinked, only now fully realizing what had flowed naturally from the end of his piping cone. A school of tiny, white-chocolate goldfish lay cooling on the sheet. The tattoo on his back was burning - stinging sharply from his sweat. No doubt the existence of that fish had influenced his art. The little fish were elegant enough so he wouldn't complain. Putting his various creations into the walk-in to cool, Sanji decided to step out for another quick smoke. He found Hewitt already there. The unsociable man grunted in greeting and took another drag on his smoke. Sanji knew he didn't see anything other than his work when he was creating new designs so he wasn't at all surprised that he hadn't heard the man slip by him earlier to smoke. What did surprise him was when Hewitt took the cigarette out of his mouth to talk, "So you got a tattoo."

"You noticed that, huh?"

"I thought you were morally opposed to 'defacing' one's body?"

Sanji rolled his eyes, "You sound like a yuppie, prick."

Hewitt pointedly raised an eyebrow, and Sanji protested, "I'm a cool guy! I got one, didn't I? And it's fucking badass!"

"Knowing you and your friends, you probably got smashed and did it on a dare. So what is it? A mermaid?"

Sanji sulked and smoked, unable to deny Hewitt's accusations, "S'not a shitty mermaid. It's a lionfish."

"Well it's original at least." Hewitt chuckled darkly, "So does that mean I can stop wearing fucking cover-up everyday?"

Inspecting his fellow artesian's face, Sanji was impressed that like always, he couldn't even see a shadow of the numerical tattoo he knew to be there. "No. At least I wasn't dumb enough to get mine right out in front on my face! This is a fucking respectable business and we have an image to maintain."

Growling half-heartedly, Hewitt stomped on the remains of his cigarette, "Whatever you say boss. I suppose I should go rescue Billy from that lunatic, Monkey."

"Good man. Just give him another cake and tell him he'll get another tomorrow if he leaves."

Hewitt nodded and left. Enjoying one last drag of his cigarette, Sanji smiled to himself. Luffy kept things lively and the insatiable man always appreciated his creations with an earnestness that made Sanji happy to indulge that wild Monkey's whims. He'd be sure to make the guy something special tomorrow. 

Now that his chocolate had time to set, Sanji just had to assemble his treats. Chocolate mousse and raspberries in little cups made of dark chocolate lace; small squares of chili infused chocolates with a decorative squiggle of dark chocolate and grains of sea salt; chocolates filled with cherries and topped with a cute, white chocolate goldfish… but the crown jewel of the lot were the cupcakes. Sanji's special chocolate cupcakes with various frostings were the only baked good that he actually made here. His cakes, donuts, and other little pastry goods were ordered from a nice bakery and then perfected by topping them with his personal chocolate blends. However, they made the cupcakes by hand early each morning and usually sold out before the afternoon hours. His limited edition cupcakes for holidays would often lead to lines of customers outside the shop hoping for a treat. Today he was using pink, white chocolate icing and a paper-thin, dark chocolate carnation for the garnish. It was edible perfection - and he'd finished with time to spare.

Carefully packing the treats into a box, Sanji cleaned up the small mess he'd made and went out front to say goodbye to his employees. Billy was chatting with an older woman by the display case, explaining how much work went into each perfect bonbon, and Hewitt was cleaning the windows. He nodded at them before going out to hail another cab. 

Driving back to the shop, Sanji was filled with nervous excitement. What would they all think of what he'd made? Would they be impressed? Would this put him back in everyone's good graces?

Paying the driver, Sanji took a deep breath and reentered the shop. They must not have scheduled any appointments for lunch because he could see that green-haired guy, Zoro, sorting through a rack while the cute shopgirl was folding shirts. Fidgeting in place for an awkward moment, Sanji gathered the courage to walk up to Zoro. "I brought all of you something to have with your lunch."

Zoro didn't answer right away - his brow was furrowed and his gaze guarded. Sanji was quick to explain, "I behaved like an ass earlier. I still don't remember much of last night, but I know what I did wasn't your fault. So maybe we can start over?" He chewed his lip as he waited for an answer, aware of the other shop employees coming to inspect the open box of treats in his hands.

 


	6. Tattoos

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such the delay everyone! With the OPBigBang over now, Shaetil and I have more time to do other things, like update this thing!

Zoro eyed the box in the blond's hands, nose wrinkled in disgust at the entire thing. The guy he had hung out with the night before had been cool enough, even if he was drunk, but so far sober him was a jerk. A really fucking hot jerk, but still a jerk. Robin rested a hand on his shoulder and he glanced back to her raising an eyebrow.

“Why don't you lock the door for lunch, hm?” Her voice was cool and calm, instantly making him relax despite how tense he felt.

“Oh thank you!” Before he even moved, Zoro loosened the tie around his throat and moved away from Sanji and Robin to easily flick the lock. Pulling off his suit jacket as well, Perona fell in next to him as they walked over to the counter. “What do you think he's got in that box?”

“A little of everything,” Sanji's voice sounded next to Zoro as he set the large white box down. The words Spirale de Chocolat were swirled across the box cover and the green haired man tried hard to repress the urge to roll his eyes. The blond settled next to him, holding out his hand now that the box was sitting on the counter. “Sanji Black, forgive my earlier reaction, would you? Today has been taxing.”

“Roronoa Zoro,” he grunted, grasping the blond's hand and shaking it firmly. The other man's hand in his own actually gave him a mixed reaction before they let go. Part of Zoro wanted to grasp tightly, haul him in close and punch him square in the jaw. Another part of him kind of wanted to kiss him and forgive him. Yet, still, another part wanted to cock a smirk and tell him he would only forgive Sanji if they had dinner. Instead, he managed to pull out his fake smile. “How's the tattoo feel?”

“Tight?” The blond spoke questioningly, raising an eyebrow and tilting his head slightly. Rolling his shoulder a little, he made this face and let go of Zoro's hand. “I left the A&D my friend brought over at home. He said something about needing to put it on the tattoo a few times a day.”

“Yeah,” Nodding, Zoro watched as Perona moved around the counter and grabbed both their phones, handing him his before grabbing the box and peering inside. Glancing at his phone, he gave a small smile at a text from his brother, letting him know that he got the book, classes were going well and he would call that night. “Did he give you actual A&D?”

“I don't know?” Sanji furrowed his brow in question.

“These are amazing Sanji!” Perona spoke with her mouth full of food, displaying one of the reasons exactly why Zoro hung out with her. Yes, she may have been a girl, but she was just one of the guys. Cheeks puffed with some sort of cupcake, crumbs littering her lips. Her eyes were wide in obvious delight before groaning and letting her eyes roll back in her head. “Zoro, you've gotta try these!”

“Naw, I'm good.” Waving a hand, he crossed his arms and went back to Sanji. The blond had a slightly hurt look on his pale features that for some reason made him bite his tongue in regret at what he said. Dammit, why did he have to like this guy? “I, um, I just don't like sweets; it's nothing personal.” Jerking a thumb over his shoulder, Zoro tried to change the subject. “I keep some A&D outback. You want to wash that up?”

The blond narrowed his eyes at Zoro in thought. What could he have been thinking? Granted Zoro's proposal sounded pretty off, given what had transpired between them this morning, but the man did just get a tattoo and if he hadn't washed it or put any ointment on it since that morning, it was due time for more.

Carefully Sanji brought his other hand up to rub at his shoulder, winching slightly. Zoro knew it was tender, it always was the worst the second and third days. “Why do you keep some here?” He asked carefully, not sure if he would be accepting help from them or not.

“Have you seen his arms?!” Perona asked loudly, still chomping away on her cupcake.

Zoro snorted. “He has, although you probably don't remember it.” Frowning, Zoro undid the button to his right sleeve cuff and pulled it back, revealing the bracelet like curl of a black dragon's tail around his wrist. “My entire right arm is this black one and my left is the red one. The tails are at my wrists and they both twist around my arms where their heads come up over my shoulder to meet the white one that's on my back. You,” he paused, clearing his throat and running a hand over the back of his neck. “You seemed to like that one the best.”

“I did?” Sanji's eyes widened as Zoro explained the elaborate tattoos on his arms. The blue orbs slid from the colors along Zoro's tanned skin to meet his dark eyes. “Shit, how drunk was I?”

“I have no idea!” Chuckling, he jerked his head towards the back. “Come on, there's an employee lounge and restroom back there. You can get it washed and put more ointment on it.”

“Zoro,” Robin commented, a cupcake sitting in between her long fingers. “Take Mister Black there and back please. No where else.”

“Okay.” Giving a sharp nod, the two men moved outback to the lounge they had set up. They didn't speak as they did so, not even when Zoro opened a drawer at Franky's spare desk and rummaged around till he pulled out a tube of the ointment. Only when he flicked on the light in the bathroom did Sanji seem to get uncomfortable.

He cleared his throat and glared at Zoro. “Law, that was my asshole buddy from last night, cleaned this for me this morning.”

Zoro shrugged and moved to pick up one of the hand towels folded on the small table. “Was he the redhead or the cu...the dark haired one?” Shit, that would have totally fucking blown. Calling his friend 'cute' right before turning and asking him to take his own shirt off.

Tossing the towel into the sink, Zoro did turn, rolling his shirt sleeves and giving a small shrug. Both of his tattoos were visible up to his elbows and he didn't miss the way the blond's eyes flicked to the red one this time around. “That makes sense. I had to have Perona wash the one on my back. Not like I could really reach it.”

“Why are you doing this? I have been a huge fucking dick-wad and yet here you are...” he trailed off waving a hand at Zoro as if that would explain exactly what he was thinking.

“You're right,” Smirking at the blond, he wasn't about to argue that point. “But my friend put a lot of work into this piece and I'll be damned if you ruin it. And I will fucking break your nose if you tell me you just plan on getting it removed again.”

“I—I don't know what I want to do with it anymore.” Looking away, Sanji moved to pull off his shirt without Zoro even asking, wincing in pain.

“Hold up a sec,” Reaching out to place a hand on the chef's shoulder, he moved to take a better look at the tattoo. It was sticking to his shirt slightly, the dark coloring coming through the faded green shirt. “Let me get this damp so it comes away from your skin better. Too bad you don't have a new shirt to put on, that would be best.” Moving to do just that, Zoro huffed and tried not to think too much into this.

Yes, the blond was hot. Yes, he was clearly sincerely apologetic for his actions earlier and he did seem to not be as big of a jerk as he was when he came in here at first, but it still wasn't a reason to get all excited, right? Right. But damn, he was going to enjoy this so, so much.

Moving back to Sanji, he carefully rested the warm wet towel against the blond's shoulder. Sucking in a sharp breath, he then relaxed, shoulders slumping slightly. “So, um, how did you meet your, our, I guess, tattoo artist?”

“Usopp?” Chuckling to himself and pulling the towel away, he moved back to the sink. “Okay, you can take off the shirt now. He and I went to school together. He was always doodling on me in classes. In fact, this red one here was completely free hand. He drew on my arm with a sharpie and proceeded to put ink to it right after.”

“Oh wow,” Sanji breathed out, holding his shirt in his hands and turning his back towards Zoro a little more. “Did he do that with mine last night?”

“Most likely.” Nodding, Zoro carefully pressed the towel, now lathered with soap against Sanji's skin. The blond's back was just as pale as the rest of him, but the lithe build was clear underneath the skin. He couldn't help letting his eyes trail down his spine as he waited a moment before cleaning the lion fish tattoo, his gaze landing on an old faded scar at his lower back.

“What possessed you to get a tattoo in the first place?”

“Honestly? Usopp needed a guinea pig as an apprentice. I have this one on my leg, completely his idea mind you, of a fucking tiger holding a sword in it's mouth. Takes up the entire back of my calf.” Chuckling to himself, Zoro could still see how nervous Usopp was at actually tattooing a person. He had been the artist's first human subject, but that tiger was still one of Zoro's favorite ones.

He went back to cleaning, carefully wiping off the extra leaked ink and the old ointment before wiping the entire tattoo over once more. He repeated the actions with a different part of the towel that had no soap in it, before grabbing a dry one and simply holding it against the blond's shoulder. Usopp really was a fucking tattoo genius to be able to basically free hand this thing onto this guy's back.

“How many tattoos do you have anyways?”

“Lost count.” Shrugging, Zoro picked up the tube of A&D. “Hell half the time I fall sleep in the chair while he works anyways.”

“You fucking sleep through getting a tattoo?!” Sanji's head whipped back to look at him over his shoulder, eyes wide and jaw open. “Doesn't it hurt?”

“You tell me. You have a tattoo.” Flicking open the cap, Zoro squeezed out a little bit onto his finger tips and moved to press it against the blond's shoulder. “Did your friend tell you how much to use of this? You don't want to put too much on, yet not too little either.”

Sanji sighed in relief, shoulders dropping once more. “No, but it can't be too hard to figure out right?”

Taking a breath to speak, Zoro was cut off by his phone ringing. Sanji raised an eyebrow at him and the green haired man gave him a black look. “My brother likes the song.” Wiping his hands off on the towel, he grabbed his phone and swiped the call, walking out of the bathroom so Sanji could put his shirt back on. “Hey what's up?” He didn't move far though, as Robin had asked him to do.

“ _Zoro?! Aren't you at work?”_

“Yes, on lunch, that's how I am able to answer. Aren't you supposed to be in class?”

There was a giggle over the line. “ _On lunch!”_

“Of course you are. I got your text. Glad you got your book. Tell me tonight about the gross girls okay?” Sanji came out of the bathroom at that exact moment, giving him a strange look before moving back out to the front of the building. Rolling his eyes and repressing the urge to smack himself in the forehead like a moron, he huffed into the phone.

Chopper seemed oblivious to it thankfully. _“Oh I will. It was quite educational, but I can see why you like guys.”_

“Y-you do?” Oh great. He was too young to be having this kind of conversation with his kid brother.

“ _Yeah, too many new terms to learn. Did you know that while males only have the penis and testicles, females have...”_

“Chopper! Holy hell Tony! Enough! Ugh...I can't have this conversation with you, you're still like three to me.” Covering his face with his hand, Zoro could feel his cheeks heating up. Oh great. Just what he needed now, especially with the asshole jerk-face he was crushing on out in the front with Perona and...oh shit! Perona! “I gotta let you go Tony! I will call you tonight okay?!”

Without even giving him time to answer, Zoro ended the call and made his way back to the front, hoping beyond hope that his shit headed coworker hadn't ratted him out yet about liking Sanji.


End file.
